Ever since the Middle Ages, Hamburg has profited as the hub and driver in Baltic trade and from good economic, cultural and political relations to the cities, regions and nations bordering the sea. But although the intensity and extent of these relationships suffered with the decline of the Hanseatic League (and then again under the "Iron Curtain" that fell after World War II), the feeling of community has remained.

With the end of communism, the Baltic once again plays a significant role for Hamburg as a growth region. A new era is dawning in the east. Especially since the accession to the European Union of the states bordering the Baltic - Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland - an economic zone has emerged that is characterized by strong growth, few or no barriers and peace. And it is a long way from exhausting its potential. This is true of Riga just as it is for Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Hamburg, Gdansk and Copenhagen. The economies of the ten countries bordering the Baltic, with nearly 90 million people, are growing more dynamically than any other region. The fact that a third of all European exports come from here are clear evidence of this.

Hamburg is once again the hub of European trade in the Baltic region. Already, a quarter of all containers handled in Hamburg are attributable to Baltic and eastern European trade. But not only the Baltic and eastern European states are ensuring an upturn in business in Germany’s principal seaport. Hamburg is also the main trading center for the Scandinavian countries of northern Europe. Following the building of the Øresund Bridge and the continuous extension of the Kiel Canal, the planned fixed crossing of the Fehmarn Belt will also serve to further speed up this development.

The Hamburg Senate has made utilizing and developing the Baltic as a “sea of peace and possibilities” a political focus for Hamburg.